Gone like the Wind
by xprimrose
Summary: The Straw Hat Pirates have a new nakama. Everyone seems to love her- except for Zoro, who seems to really dislike her. Though, the two share a rather unique relationship. Not to mention her past with Ace.  I changed the name to suit the story better
1. The Conflict

"Zoro, let me ask you something." I turned around to face him. I received nothing but a glance up in reply. My mouth formed a straight line. "Why?" I questioned, cocking my head.

"Why what." He replied dryly. I licked my lips thinking of a good way to state it without seeming so taut. I shifted my feet uncomfortably.

"Why don't you seem to like me?" The words spat out from my mouth. There was a long silence before he opened his eyes and straightened up.

"What makes you think I don't like you?"

"Everything. It's just the way you treat me. Different from everyone else."

"How so?"

"Well. For one, it feels like you try to avoid me."

"I avoid everyone."

"Especially me." I stared at him, though in this lighting it was difficult to make eye contact. "And I feel like you're rather uncomfortable when I'm around. Like now."

"Then why'd you offer to do night shift with me? I told you, there isn't enough space up here for two people." He replied , furrowing his brows.

"Because it's the only way I could get you to talk to me. Couldn't possibly ignore me if we were both up here."

"Huh."

I frowned.

"Tell me why." I stated firmly. "I just want to know. It feels like I got along with everyone else from the start, cept for you. I thought I'd be able to wear you down eventually, but now I realize, you just don't want me to be around, do you?" He sighed and wrapped the blanket around his shoulders.

"Stop bothering me."

"No." I crossed my arms.

"You remind me of someone I used to know," He finally said. I squatted down so I'd be able to hear him better, and wrapped my arms around my knees. "She was a swordswoman."

" I don't even know how to hold one properly."

"That's not the point." His eyes shifted up and he glanced into the sky. A look of sorrow formed across his face as he began to tell his story. "When we were kids, I wanted to beat her at sword fighting. But no matter how hard I tried, she always won. She wanted to be the best in the world."

"Like you?" I asked

"Yes. But she couldn't."

"Why couldn't she?"

"Because she was a woman." He stopped for a moment and looked at me. "Her father told her she could never become the best , because she was a girl. One day, after beating me in a fight, she cried. She told me I was lucky for being a boy, because her being a girl meant she could never achieve anything she wanted." I nodded. He looked at me with an expression I couldn't' read. "And before she could prove to herself otherwise, she died."

"Oh," I replied, not knowing what to say.

"You remind me of her. With your stupid 'just because I'm a woman' talk. I hate it. You're practically mocking her." I frowned at his spitefulness.

"Wanting to prove to the world something isn't a crime, Zoro."

"No, but it gives me a reason to not want to be around you." He snapped back. I sighed and stood up. I leaned over the edge of the birds nest and gazed out to the ocean, where the sun was just beginning to peek up over the horizon.

"Well, now I know." I finally replied.

"Yeah. So leave me alone." He scoffed grouchily.

"But Zoro." I paused, "I like you."

There was no response. I could hear the shuffling around of him standing up.

"Well." He started. I held my breath. "I don't like you." I felt a quick pierce through my heart. He began to climb down the ladder. "Night shift's over."

I sighed and rested my cheek on my hand.

Well, that certainly answered my question.

* * *

><p><strong>Hellloooo ~ <strong>

**Well, for those of you who are wondering whether it's that blue haired girl from the Marines, NO**

**It is not her.**

**It's just an OC who happens to share a few similarities as her.**

**TO BE STRONG WOMEN! YEAH!**

**Anyway, I hope the beginning isn't too vague**

**usually my chapters would never be this short**

**this is sort of an intro only XD;**

**Hope you like ~**


	2. To Arabasta!

"More coffee, Han-san?" Sanji asked warmly. My head suddenly jerked up from the table. I hadn't realized I'd fallen asleep. It was a rather chilly morning, and I was wrapped up in a heavy wool blanket Nami had picked up during our stay in Drum Island. It was the first island I visited with them as a crew after they picked me up from my village in Karine.

"Yes please Sanji-kun." I murmured, my eyes barely open. "Extra sugar if you can. Anything to keep me awake."

"Aye aye, Han-san!" He swooned, and immediately began to brew up another pitcher of coffee.

"Rough night?" Vivi asked, as she sipped her morning tea.

"You could say so." I mumbled back.

"You're welcome to talk about it if you'd like." She replied, carefully placing the tea cup onto the table. Vivi and I had become considerably close from the moment I had joined the crew. She was kindhearted and open minded, which made it very easy to talk to her.

On nights that a wretched case of insomnia would strike the both of us, we'd sneak into the kitchen and speak of what was on our minds. She often spoke of Arabasta and how worried she was for her kingdom with the rebellion going on and all. I mainly just listened and gave her advice and reassurance that everything would be alright. It was rarely that I'd ever talk about myself. There was really nothing to talk about anyway, excluding my dilemma with Zoro, and I'd sworn to keep that a secret. Hence the reason I barely ever showed any feelings towards him, to keep everyone's radar low.

Aside from that little secret that I kept to myself, I found our late night conversations to be very cleansing for the mind, and I was glad to have her on the ship.

"Alright. Later though, when I'm not so sleepy and I actually know what I'm saying." Her eyebrows furrowed slightly with worry, and she nodded

"Okay, whatever you'd like."

I smiled then averted my attention towards the door, resting my head on my arms. I noticed someone's shadow was coming.

"Good morning Nami-swaaan!" Sanji greeted enthusiastically. Nami stepped into the kitchen.  
>"Good morning everyone." She replied, "I see you're enjoying that blanket I bought," She joked, and sat down beside me<p>

"Oh, sorry. I hope you don't mind. It was a bit cold this morning." I apologized. "How did you sleep Nami-san?"

"Not so great." She grumbled "I could hear Zoro's snoring all the way from my bedroom."

"Ah…" I pondered. It didn't surprise me he was still able to sleep after our conversation. That man could lose an ear and completely forget about it after a nice nap. After we spoke, I decided I wouldn't be able to sleep, and ended up camping in the birds nest till morning.

"We're getting pretty close to Arabasta." Nami stated, as she unrolled a map onto the table. "A cup of coffee please, Sanji-kun."

"Already prepared for you, my beautiful angel!" He delicately placed a freshly poured cup of black coffee on the table in front of Nami. "And more for you, Han-san!" He skillfully tilted the kettle and somehow managed to pour me the perfect amount into my cup without spilling a drop, even as the ship was rocking back and forth. It was amazing what a magnificent chef he was.

"Thanks." I replied, and took a sip. I cringed at the coffee that had just singed my tongue.

"Oh, by the way Han, I need you to give the sail a little push when you're finished with breakfast. The waters around here are a bit morecalm than expected, and we need to get to Arabasta as soon as possible."

"Mm." She was referring to my wind fruit power. When I was a little girl back on my island of Karine, a couple of my kids in my village had found a devils fruit washed ashore. They brought it into the dojo to show off to everyone. Upset that they were receiving all the attention, I took a bite of it when no one was looking and changed my life forever.

It was pretty useful for when we needed the ship to get away fast. In just the past two days, I had lured us away from 2 sea kings and a marine ship. Not that the boys couldn't have handled them, but Nami claimed we didn't have time to be messing around, and demanded I guide the ship elsewhere.

"I'll do it now." I replied, and took another long sip of coffee before standing up. "Ahh, that's good coffee, Sanji-kun."

"Only the best for you, Han-saaan!" I smiled and left the blanket on the chair before stepping outside.

"Han! Good morning!" I was glad to be greeted by chipper ol' Luffy and his signature goofy grin.

"Good morning Luffy. Excited for breakfast?" I asked teasingly.

"Of couuurse! I haven't eaten since dinnnnerrrr!" He pouted.

"Oh really?" I scoffed, "Because I'm so sure I heard some rustling around in the kitchen last night. Sounded like someone was snatching a midnight snack?" I giggled. He leaned in close and whispered,

"Shh, don't tell Sanji. He'll kick me all the way to Raftel! Shishishi!" He laughed. I flashed him a quick smile before he turned to enter the kitchen. Even though he wasn't exactly what you'd expect in a pirate, I was more than happy to have him as my captain. When it came down to it, he knew what to do.

"Usopp! Chopper! Carue! Whatcha guys up to?" I called over the balcony. The three of them were playing around with some new gadget Usopp had created.

"Ahh! Good morning Han-san! This right here is my latest invention. It;s called the Clima-tact! It's a new weapon that I've been working on for Nami. It has the ability to alter the weather in mysterious and wondrous ways. Ha-ha!" He bragged, puffing out his chest.

"You're so cool Usopp!" Chopper exclaimed, clapping his hands together.

"Ahh, seems interesting. How's about letting me test it out later?" I joked ,

"I'm afraid not," He crossed his arms in a disapproving stance. "This beholds power too great for even you, Han-san." He replied knowingly.

"Come play with us anyway, Han-san!" Chopper waved his arms in the air, signaling me to come down to the lower deck.

"Quaack!" Carue squawked.

"Sure. Just let me do this little thing for Nami first." I replied. I twisted my feet into a pivot and got my arms ready to punch. "Cyclone fist!" I said, as a small whirlwind formed from my hand and swirled towards the sail. The ship suddenly jerked forward a little, and began to move much quicker. I jumped off the ledge and landed next to Chopper, who was staring in amazement at the sudden boost in speed.

"That was so cool Han-san! I wish I could be as useful as you…" He looked down at his small reindeer feet in disappointment. I patted him on the head and reassured him,

"Don't be silly! You're the doctor, Chopper. You're the most important one here! All of our lives depend on you. You're practically the one that keeps this entire crew functioning." I smiled. He looked up at me and began to sway his body back and forth in an upbeat motion.

"You asshole! I don't appreciate your stupid compliments! It doesn't make me happy at all!" I giggled at his incapability to take compliments. Even after all his time, he refused to admit our praises pleased him.

"Oi, oi! What's going on outside? " Zoro groaned as he stepped up from their bedroom under-deck. He winced and shielded his eyes at the beams of sunlight hitting his face. "Can't a man sleep around here without having to be knocked out of bed?"

"Zoro, why are you up so late?" Chopper questioned curiously

"I had night duty, remember?" He said, as he slammed the wooden door leading down to the hull.

"Did you sleep well, Zoro?" I asked. He ignored my question and slumped up the stairs into the kitchen.

"What's with him?" Asked Usopp, raising his eyebrow.

"Who knows," Chopper replied.

"Well anyway, I'm starving! Let's go get some breakfast too, before Luffy eats it all!" Usopp exclaimed, "Aye!" Chopper followed him with Carue waddling behind as they all headed up the stairs. I sighed._ I guess the talk last night did nothing but create even more tension between us_. I turned around and made my way into the study room.

* * *

><p>Chopper's medical texts, Nami's atlases, and other miscellaneous books were neatly organized amongst a tall wooden shelf at the back corner of the room. I plopped myself down onto the couch beside Nami's desk and let out a long yawn.<p>

_I guess I shouldn't be worrying about Zoro so much. There are more important things to be thinking about anyway. I wonder how Father's doing…_

The first time that the Straw Hat pirates and I had met was when they came to my village. They were following the direction of the log pose, which lead them into a thick fog that surrounded my island. The fog was artificially created due to the nuclear waste dumped into the ocean by the marines that worked at the base. They were terrible men, arresting anyone they could, and accusing false felony just to gather up slaves to work on their battleship. They called it the Great Bomb Raider, due to the fact that it was powered by nuclear power.

The government had not approved of the ship being created, therefore refused to send any more soldiers in to work on it. The marines, feeling animosity towards the government, decided to begin snatching up our people and making them work hard labor in replacement of the soldiers. My father was one of those people. After he was taken away, our family dojo had to be shut down, and nothing was ever the same after that.

After Zoro had accidentally stumbled into the dojo, I had challenged him to a fight; His katana against my wind aikido. He refused, saying it would not be a fair fight, and I accused him of degrading me because I was a woman. That really angered him for a reason I did not know at the time, and so we dueled. I had underestimated him a little, but it was a well fought battle. After he managed to give my cheek a small cut, we decided it was over. But in that spot on my lower left cheek, it left a little scar that never went away. Perhaps symbolizing the little infatuation I had for Zoro from the start. Nothing big, but something about his determination and his hard-headedness made my emotions go crazy. He was a rather admirable guy, though no one else seemed to think so.

Once the fight was finished, he asked for directions to a local restaurant, so I led him to the best steak house in the entire village of Masuke. There, we found Luffy and Sanji. I was surprised to hear they were all pirates, and even more surprised to hear that the goofball Luffy was their captain! We were soon joined by Nami and Vivi, who had just come back from shopping, followed by Usopp, Chopper, and Carue, who had just visited the novelty store across the way. After telling them my situation with the marines and my father, Luffy was determined to help me out. That was when I realized, not all pirates were bad people.

And so, after defeating the marine officer, Captain Brass-Knuckle Kaiba, of course they didn't have much time left on the island before the rest of the marines caught up to them. I thanked them for helping my father, and asked how I could ever repay them.

"Be our Nakama!" I remembered Luffy had said. Tears filled my eyes; It had been so long since I last heard those words. My whole life I wanted to be able to go out to sea, and take on my dream of becoming the best aikido martial artist in the world. I wanted to prove all of those stupid boys who had bullied me as a kid that I was going to be someone. But I couldn't, I had just been reunited with my father, and it'd be a hard thing to just leave suddenly.  
>"Go with them," He urged me. "Your old man can handle himself. This is your only chance to be who you want to be." He gave me a warm smile that practically broke my heart. But I agreed.<p>

After a tearful departing, I turned around to face everyone; These were my new nakama. I realized that this was the start of a whole new beginning. I was ready to prove to the world that women weren't always the ones being kidnapped and having to be protected. One day, everyone would know my name, and know me as the best aikido martial artist in the world.

My vision soon became blurry, and my eyes slowly started to close. I decided that a little nap couldn't hurt…

* * *

><p>"Laaanddd ho!" I was woken up by someone shouting outside. It sounded like Usopp's voice. I sat up straight and rubbed my eyes, wondering how long I had been asleep.<br>"Han-san? What are you doing in here?" Vivi asked, as she entered the room.

"Quaaackk! Quack Quack?" Carue followed along behind her. He tilted his head as if he were asking me the same question.

"Ahh… I took a little nap. Guess Sanji's coffee wasn't enough to keep me awake." I chuckled.  
>"Oh, I see. Well, we're going to be docking at Arabasta soon. I just came in here to gather my things."<p>

"We are? Well it's about time." I stood from the couch and stretched. I brushed the wrinkles out of my shirt and quickly ran my fingers through my hair, to make myself look a bit less disheveled.

"You might want to change into something a little less warm. After all, Arabasta is a desert island," She warned. "You're certainly going to have a heat stroke if you wear that…"

"Right. I'll change before we get off." I reassured, and walked outside.

"Ahh, there you are! What were you doing in the study?" Questioned Nami. She was heading in there too, to grab her stuff I assumed.

"I fell asleep on the couch." I replied. "We're at Arabasta?"

"Yup, just arrived, finally! Now we just need to get Vivi to Alubarna before the rebellion starts…"

"We'll get there in time," I replied, flashing her a reassuring smile.

"Oh boy I can't wait to finally get my feet on land!" Luffy said ecstatically. "I love sand!"

"Oi, oi, Luffy! Be careful! We can't afford for you to get into any trouble. Our first priority is-"

"Yahooo!" Luffy ignored Usopp's warning and instead jumped onto the sand, flailing about. "Hot hot hot!" He cried, jumping from one foot to the other in attempt to keep away from the ground.

"And he's our captain…"Sanji said, shaking his head.

"Do you guys have everything we need?" Chopper asked Nami and Vivi as they walked out from the study. It looked as if they had both had a change of clothes

"Yup. Han, aren't you going to change?" Nami asked me.

"Oh , yeah. Well, it's too late now. I'll just buy some clothes once we get there. I can survive till then." I replied.

"You sure? It's going to be unbelievably hot." Vivi warned.

"Yeah , no problem. Besides, it's better for my arms to be covered from the sun anyway, and if I get too hot, don't forget that I have the wind fruit power." I winked and made "o.k." sign with my hands.

"Well alright. Let's go then everyone!" The crew jumped off the ship one by one and onto the sand. All except for Zoro, who was just staring into the desert as if something was bothering him.

"Aren't you going , Zoro?" I asked. He turned to look at me.

"Don't worry about me. Go ahead." My mouth formed a straight line, and I shrugged. A whirl wind slowly began to form under my feet , and carried me down safely onto the sand. He jumped off the ship with an "Umph." and landed beside me.

"Well, go on." He said.

"Right…" I replied, and began to walk.

* * *

><p>I began to regret not bringing a hat along. The sun was beaming down hard on us; it felt as if we were in an oven. Usopp was about ready to collapse.<p>

"Someone… put me out of my misery…" He moped. Chopper had already given up, and was laying on a little board that Zoro was pulling along behind him. His thick fur was great to keep warm for winter on Drum Island, but not so much for the heat of the Arabasta desert.

"Hey… wait a minute…" Nami said.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Where's Luffy?"

* * *

><p><strong>yaaayy :D chapter 2 is up~<strong>

**I hope you guys like it. It's a bit lengthy but I had to put her background somewhere in there.**

**I'm really excited for the up coming events, but i'm too tired to write any more right now. Its four in the morning.**

**oh, and just so you guys know,**

**This isn't going to be exactly like what happened in the anime**

**I'm changing it up a bit since Han is in the story,**

**and just cause its my fanfic,**

**and i sorta forgot a few things since it's been so long that i've seen that episode LOL**

**enjoy~**


	3. Luffy Has a Brother

"Luuufffyyy!" She called helplessly. "Where did that idiot run off to…"

"Maybe he smelled food somewhere." Zoro said, frowning.

"How did he run off without any of us noticing? He has our luggage!" Nami pouted, "And our money…"

"Don't worry Nami-san, he'll show up sooner or later." Vivi reassured her.

"He better…"

"Ahhhh, it's toooo hoooot! Han, help a man out would ya?" Usopp begged me, as he collapsed onto the sand.

"Sure, if you could find me a man." I retorted jokingly.

"Ha-ha, very funny."

"Looks like his weak little body can't take much more." Sanji spat out sarcastically, as he released a puff of smoke.

"I was just kidding Usopp." I laughed. With a quick flick of my wrist, a strong current of wind blew through us, intertwining between our bodies. Everyone let out a little sigh of relief.

"Much metter." Usopp thanked. It seemed like the wind had almost given everyone a slight boost in motivation to keep going.

"I can't take this heat, I'm only made for winter…" Complained Chopper, as he was being pulled along.

"It's cause you're so damn fuzzy," Usopp grunted. "Why don't you take off that animal costume of yours?" Chopper frowned and stood up,

"What did you say?" He transformed into his heavy point and hovered over Usopp, menacingly.

"Oi, Oi! Chopper, don't change like that! I can't pull you!" Zoro yelled. Chopper ignored him.

"Who are you calling a monster, big nose!"

"Y-you are! I-I'm not scared of you!" Usopp's legs quivered in fear as he tried his best to keep volleying back insults.

"Why you-"

"Just change back already!" Zoro growled. A little chuckle escaped my lips and I looked away; I always found it funny when they bickered like this.

* * *

><p>While the rest of us were dragging our feet and sweating waterfalls, the only one who seemed to be unaffected by the weather was Vivi.<p>

"Vivi, how are you able to stand this?" I asked her, wiping my forehead.

"Well I grew up here. I'm used to this temperature." She replied.

"Oh, right." I nodded, embarrassed. Obviously.

"Han-san, is it too hot for you? Maybe it'd help if you took that shirt off-"

_-bonk-_

"Keep walking, love-cook." Zoro huffed.

"Why you-" He replied, setting down the bags; a newly formed bump was throbbing on the top of his head.

"I'll change once we camp out, Sanji-kun. No need to worry about me." I quickly spat out, in efforts to prevent them from fighting.

"Actually, it's better for you to sweat. It's a natural way for your body to cool itself down." Vivi stated.

"Ahh, okay. Well, whatever you think is best for Han-san!"He replied, and flashed Zoro a grimace before he resumed walking.

I stood at the back of the group, where I usually did when we traveled. Each of my nakama seemed as though in their little world. Sanji was carrying the large sack on his back, while the other half was with Luffy; Wherever he was. Nami and Vivi were walking at the head of the group, discussing which way we should go and how long it'd take to get to our destination. Zoro was pulling poor Chopper along on a little sled-like object that we'd built for him. He wasn't used to the hot climate since he was born and raised on a winter island, and his fur didn't make things much better for him. Usopp of course was second to last, looking as if he could collapse any minute. He dragged his feet in the sand as if chains were weighing them down, and his tongue hung loosely out of his mouth. I had my hair twisted into a high bun to keep it off my neck, but I was still sweating like a pig nonetheless.

"Whew, it is getting pretty hot. When are we going to rest?" I asked, placing my hand on my neck.

"Up there!" Nami shouted suddenly, "There's rocks we can hang out under." She pointed at an area of tall, almost mountainous boulders off in the distance. I could see there was plenty of shade, and let out a little sigh of relief. Any longer and we would've all fried to a crisp

"Thank god."

"Shade!" Cried Usopp. "Ahh, someone give me the canteen please... I'm dying."

"No more for you," Sanji snapped. "At this rate, we'll have none left by the time we reach the city!"

"Oi Sanji don't be so bitter! Give it to me!" Before he could reach for the canteen, Usopp received a loud smack on the head and collapsed to the ground.

"No need to kick him," Zoro sighed

"Well I'm not gonna let him drink all the water!"

"Who's gonna carry him now?" I asked

"I know I'm not," Scoffed Zoro.

"Oi, Usopp, wake up." Sanji nudged at his side with his foot. "I didn't even kick you that hard.."

"Ahhh " He groaned. A large bump had formed on the top of his head.

"Usopp, just hang on till we get to the rocks over there, and we'll let you have some water."

"Ahhhhh," He ignored me and groaned some more.

"Eugh…" Sanji sighed, "I'll carry him."

"Thank you Sanji-kun."

"Noooo problem Han-san!" He grinned , as if he had a sudden moodswing. He slung Usopp over his other shoulder, opposite to the bags.

It was fun being around them. I never really had many friends growing up. It wasn't until I began taking aikido that I began to talk more. The boys would always tease me for being so weak and not pretty like the other girls, but once I learned how to kick their asses, they backed off. The girls on the other hand would mock me for being so athletic, but I shrugged it off most of the time, realizing that I could keep myself out of danger while they couldn't. They were exactly the reason why everyone considered women to be so vulnerable. I never tried making friends with them in the first place, knowing we were too different to ever get along. Instead, I realized my true nakama were at the dojo. Seeing as my father believed in being strict, but loving, everyone in the dojo learned to be like that too. It was my home, atleast until it was closed.

Luffy and everyone made me feel like I was their nakama for the first time since my father had been taken away by the marines. And even though I never thought I'd necessarily be sailing with pirates, how could I say no?

I smiled to myself, and suddenly I felt a sudden burst in energy, like I was ready to take on anything this desert had to throw at me. After all, I was surrounded by people who I knew would catch me if I fell.

* * *

><p>We were all glad to be greeted by the shade of the rocks. Everyone collapsed onto the sand.<p>

"C-could I have some water now…" Usopp sputtered, obviously overdramatizing.

"Fine," Sanji took the canteen off his neck and threw it at Usopp, who immediately drank it up.

"Not too much! Save some for the girls too!" Sanji growled, snatching it away from him. "Would you like some, Nami-san? Vivi-chan?"

"I'm fine, thankyou." Replied Vivi.

"Yes please," Nami grabbed the bottle from him and happily took a few gulps.  
>"Hey , how come she gets to drink so much!" Complained Usopp.<p>

"Because she's a lady!" He received another blow to the head.  
>"I'm so-orry." He replied in broken syllables.<p>

"Quaaackk!" Cried Carue, who had also collapsed besides Usopp.

"Would you like some, Han-san?" Nami offered me the water.

"I'm good, thankyou."

She screwed the cap back onto the canteen and handed it to Sanji.

"Wonder where Luffy is," Zoro said, closing his eyes. "Idiot's probably gotten himself lost." He got himself into his usual napping position; Hands behind head and his back leaning against the rock.

"Like you should be one to talk." Sanji scoffed, as he took a long drag from his cigarette.

"What did you just say?"

"Nothing, nothing!" He smiled, and crossed his arms, releasing a puff of smoke.

"I'm gonna go look for him," I said, getting up.

"Uh, Han-san, it's probably best if we stick together. This is a huge desert. He'll show up sooner or later." Nami told me.

"Don't worry, I'm not leaving." I pointed to the large rock behind her, the one that was providing us most of the shade. "I'll probably have a good view from up there." I explained. She nodded her approval.

I hopped from rock to rock by creating tiny bursts of air from under my feet, and finally reached the top. The sun was beating down harder on the rock than on ground, and I shielded my eyes to get a better look around. At first I could see nothing but barren land, but something soon caught my eye. Two figures, both wearing hats, were heading our way. I squinted my eyes in efforts to see more clearly and I could definitely tell one of them was Luffy, judging by his red vest. But who was that man beside him?

"Lufffyyy! Over here!" I yelled, waving my arms.

"Did you find him?" Zoro asked, cracking open one eye. I leaned over the edge of the rock and replied,

"Yeah, he's walking with someone else. I don't know who it is though. Help me get their attention." Everyone nodded and stood up, brushing themselves off. Then, they walked around to the front of the rock and all began to call for him. All except Zoro, who remained seated with his eyes shut once again.

"Luffy! Luuuffyy!" From atop the rock, I could barely make out his little figure. Luffy soon spotted us and began waving his arms in the air. He began to stretch his arms very far back, and suddenly sprung them towards us, dragging along whoever it was that was with him. They came flying at an unbelievable speed.

"Here he comes!" I warned.

_Bam!_

The two of them smashed into the rocks below, and large puffs of smoke covered the entire area. Zoro overhead the ruckus and stood up to join us.

"Eh? What happened?" He coughed, fanning away the smoke.

"Yo guys!" I heard someone call lightheartedly . I could recognize the giddy voice to be Luffy's.

"Luffy! Be more careful next time!"

"You idiot, you could've hurt Nami-san or Vivi-chan!" Sanji growled, coughing at the dust.

"Hahaha." I heard a familiar chuckle. "Same as you've always been, Luffy." That voice… It couldn't be…

"_Tornado kiss~_" I whispered, as I blew the remaining sand into the distance. Then, I hopped down from the rock , jumping from stone to stone and joined others.

"Han? Is that you?" I looked up to see a tan face, warmly smiling back at me. His freckles were scattered in random patterns, and his mid length black hair blew loosely in the wind, under the tan hat he always wore. He was just as I had remembered.

"Ace!" I yelped, "It's been a while!"

"Certainly has," He replied, pulling me into a tight embrace. Tears I thought had dried up long ago began to pour down my face, and I smiled, knowing they hadn't been completely forgotten.

"Ohhh! Ace, you know Han?" Luffy questioned curiously,

"Wait, Luffy, who is this?" Nami asked,

"Ah, how silly of me. I forgot to introduce myself." He softly pulled away from me and I wiped my tears before anyone could see. "My name is Portgas D. Ace." He grinned.

"Yup. He's my brother!" Said Luffy.

"Your brother?" Everyone exclaimed.

* * *

><p><strong>Soooo, yeah :'D I changed it a little bit<strong>

**Yaaay! Ace ! C:**

**ohhohoh but how do they know each other?**

**You'll have to wait till I write the next chapter LOL It's like three in the morning XD;;**

**I hope you guys enjoy ~**


	4. Ace and Han's Midnight Conversation

"Ah, it's true." Ace said, tipping his hat. "Nice to meet you guys."

Usopp stood up and brushed the sand off his overalls. "Luffy, I didn't know you had a brother."

"Yeah, he left to the sea two years before I did. He's a pirate too." He smiled, looking proud to speak of his brother.

"I see." Nami nodded. "But, Han, what about you? How do you know Ace?"

"Oh, well we-"

"Met a long time ago." I interrupted him. "His ship docked at Karine and we bumped into each other in the market place." I laughed half-heartedly. He turned and raised an eyebrow at me. I frowned and elbowed him in the gut, signaling him to play along. Thinking I had accidentally hit his belt, I looked, only to realize he had gotten a lot muscular since the last time we met. I blushed, only now noticing that he wasn't wearing a shirt. _He's changed a lot_… I thought to myself.

"Aww… Is my beautiful Han-san already taken?" Frowned Sanji, his eyes looking rather disappointed. I shuffled my feet nervously,

"We're just friends," Ace reassured him.

"Luffy! I'm so glad you're back!" Exclaimed Chopper, running over to hug his leg.

"Shishishi, me too!" He smiled, "I thought I'd never see you guys again!"

"Then stop wandering off!" Nami snapped. "What kind of irresponsible captain ditches his crew and gets lost?"

"Well, there were these evil birds, and they tricked me into giving them some food! Then they flew off with our bags!" He whined

"What? You lost our bags?" She screamed, her face beginning to turn red.

"Huh, now that you point it out, where are our bags?" Sanji asked.

"You idiot! I can't believe you lost it to a bunch of stupid birds!" Nami grabbed his collar and began shaking him violently. "We need that to survive! It's all we've got Luffy! My MONEY was in there!" At this point she was half yelling half crying.

"Oi, Nami! Let him be. There's nothing we can do now. " Zoro said, sounding half-caring.

"It wasn't my fault! They flew off with it, so I tried to chase after them!" He urged. "But after a while, I lost sight of you guys. Lucky for me though, I bumped into Ace. And now here we are. Shishishi!" He laughed.

"Is everything a joke to you?" Nami sighed, hanging her head low in sorrow. "I guess we can manage with what we've got for tonight. But we need to get to a city by tomorrow, or we won't be able to last."

"Yosh! I'll make sure we get there in time! You can count on me!" He received a quick clobber from Nami before he spoke again.

"Yeah, you better."

"I'm…sorry. I won't do it aga-a-ain…" He managed to sputter. Nami could be really scary sometimes when it came to her money.

"Anyway," She said, tucking her hair behind her ear, "We should get going. We still have a long way to go before nightfall." Everyone groaned.

"Ace, are you coming with us?" I asked him, as everyone was grabbing their things.

"Yeah, I was headed to Alubarna anyway. I'm after a man named Blackbeard. Heard he was last seen in that city."

"Blackbeard?" I asked him.

"Mhmm. He committed a crime a pirate should never do. Kill one of his own nakama." He added.

"Right."

"Yeah. " He said. "Hey, Luffy!"

"Huh?" He turned around.

"Just letting you know now, I'm making sure Whitebeard is gonna be the next Pirate King."

Luffy waved his arm in the air and scoffed, "I don't care what you say, cause I am going to be the next Pirate King." and flashed us a huge, confident grin.

"Ah, I thought you'd say that," Ace chuckled. "Arrogant as always." He shook his head. "Anyway, come on Han, we've got a long way to go."

"Mm," I nodded. I couldn't help but smile, as he grabbed my hand and pulled me along.

* * *

><p>"Jeez, it was scorching during the day, and next thing you know, it's freezing!" Usopp said, as he rubbed his shoulders. "Come here you little fuzball!" Before Chopper could run away, Usopp snatched him up and began to rub his warm body against his face.<p>

"Ohhh, Usopp that looks warm! Let me join!"

"No! Both of you stay away from me!" Chopper cried helplessly, as he struggled from Usopp's grasp. Before he could escape, Luffy scooted next to him and began rubbing his face on his fur as well. "Stoppp itt!" He yelled.

"Oi, oi! Could you keep it down?" Zoro growled grumpily. "I'm trying to sleep."

Nami narrowed her eyes. "You haven't even eaten dinner yet, Zoro."

"I'm taking my pre-dinner nap." He replied, shutting his eyes.

"Of course," She huffed under her breath

"That's how the desert is like. During the day it's burning, and by the time night comes, temperatures drop below zero. Strange, isn't it?" Vivi said, rubbing her hands in the fire. Carue was seated next to her, snuggly cuddled beside her leg. "We've come to being used to it though," She added.

"Saannjiii, give me food!" Luffy complained. "I'm exhausted from today. You jerks made me carry all the stuff!"

"That's what you get for challenging me on Janken," Scoffed Sanji. "And besides, we don't have any food, cause YOU lost it all."

"I'm sure there's got to be something around here we could eat…" He said hopefully. Suddenly, from beneath Luffy, a large, black creature arose from the sand. "What is this?" He yelled, trying his best not to fall off its slippery surface.

"It looks like a giant crab…" Usopp stared in awe.

"That's not a crab Luffy, it's a scorpion!" Screamed Vivi. "You have to be careful to keep away from its tail! Its sting is deadly!"

"Oi! Sanji! Y'think you could use this as food?" He yelled from the monsters back, ignoring Vivi's warning.

"I can make anything into food," Sanji replied, confidently.

"Alright then! Gomu Gomu no…" He began to stretch his arm back.

"Luffy! It's dangerous!"

"Pisto-"

"Flame fist!" Suddenly, Ace hurled a bright ball of flames at the animal, and the scorpion was immediately burnt to a crisp. Everyone stared with their jaws gaping.

" What was that?" Usopp asked in amazement

"You have a devils fruit too?" Asked Chopper, his eyes wide with admiration.

"Yup. The fire fruit." He nodded.

"Ace!" Luffy frowned. "He was mine!"

"Just wanted to get things over with quickly." He replied

"Oh well, either way, it's dead now." He shrugged. "Meat!" Luffy said, ripping off a chunk of its tail and stuffing it into his mouth.

"Don't eat it raw you idiot!" Sanji yelled, racing over to grab it from him.

"Oh my…" Gasped Vivi.

"That is definitely my brother." Chuckled Ace. "Hasn't changed one bit."

* * *

><p>The food had been delicious. Perhaps it was my empty stomach talking, but I never knew scorpion would taste so good.<p>

"How did you enjoy your meal?" Sanji turned to ask me.

"It was amazing, Sanji-kun." I smiled.

"I'm so flattered, Han-san!" He exclaimed

"Aaaahhhh… So good…" Luffy groaned. He'd eaten more than all ten of us put together and yet he was still hungry. He let out a large belch before continuing to stuff his face.

"You've got no manners whatsoever," snarled Sanji, snatching away the plate of food. "No more. We need to save the rest for tomorrow."

"Buut Saaannjiii!" He moaned.

"But nothing! Do you want food tomorrow or not?"

"Fine…" He pouted.

The atmosphere was beginning to get much colder, and the wind was picking up.

"You cold?" Ace asked me. He must've noticed my shivering.

"Mhmm," I said, reaching into my bag for a scarf. I wrapped it snuggly around my neck and let out a little sigh. _It'll do for now_, I thought to myself.

"I'm getting pretty sleepy." Nami yawned, stretching her arms. Usopp and Chopper were already fast asleep, both snuggled up against each other for warmth. Zoro sat close by, with his back facing the fire.

"Aaahhh, me too!" Luffy said, and plopped down onto his back with his hand behind his head.

"You gonna be alright in just a vest, Luffy?" Nami asked him

"I'll be fine." He replied cheerfully, as he turned to face the fire.

"You're right. We should rest. We've got a long day ahead of us tomorrow," Vivi said, cuddling up with Carue.

"Yeah." Nami replied.

"If you ladies are cold, maybe we could cudddlee!~" Sanji suggested.

"Keep your hands to yourself, Sanji-kun." Growled Nami, as she lay down beside Vivi.

"Ahhh, my Nami-swan is so beautiful when she's aggressive!" He swooned, clasping his hands together.

"Good night everyone," I said,

* * *

><p>Zoro and Luffy snored immediately after they had fallen asleep. Everyone else was breathing quietly, probably all exhausted from today's travel. I kept turning from side to side, constantly trying to get comfortable. I let out a little huff; It was going to be one of those nights.<p>

I quietly stood up, deciding I wouldn't be able to sleep. Being careful not to wake up Ace, sleeping peacefully besides me, I stepped over his legs watchfully and tiptoed around to the other side of the rock. Swiftly, I hopped my way up to the top and sat cross legged, gazing at the moon. Thoughts I had pushed aside from earlier today began to race through my mind.

_Ace is back. I can't believe he's back_. What a coincidence it was, that I'd join his brother's crew, out of all people. _They're nothing alike at all,_ I thought. I would've never guessed they were related, disregarding the fact that the only thing they had in common was that jet black hair and those large mischievous eyes. Was it a good thing he was back? I didn't know. All I knew was that my heart almost skipped a beat the moment I saw his face. I sighed, _I wonder if he remembers._

"Can't sleep?" I heard a voice whisper behind me. I jumped, and whipped my head around to see who it was. I squinted my eyes; A thickly built silhouette began to come into vision.

"I didn't mean to wake you." I said, once I realized who it was.

"Nah, I couldn't sleep either. Mind if I join?"

"Please." I patted the empty space besides me.

"What's on your mind?" He asked, as I felt his arms wrapping around.

"Nothing." I replied, leaning in close. The warmth of his chest was so familiar. I had almost forgotten what it felt like to be hugged.

"Why didn't you want to tell them earlier today?" He asked. I scrunched my eyebrows before answering,

"I just feel like it's better off if they don't know."

"Why?"

"Just cause."

"Mmm…" I looked up at him; His hair flew loosely in the wind, as he stared off into the distance.

"I'm sorry," He said finally.

"For what?" I asked.

"You know. What happened between us."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"I didn't want you to leave," I said, tears beginning to fill my eyes.

"I know... But I had to."A little sigh escaped his lips.

" I understand though. Why you were obligated to go." I blinked several times, hoping to dry out the tears.

"Are you kidding? You screamed at me to never come back."

"I was hurt, Ace." He squeezed me tightly.

"I knew I was going to have to leave eventually. I didn't mean to get that attached."

"Well."

"But I did. And I never regretted it. Ever."

I traced down his arm and found his hands. I locked my fingers with his, squeezing them tightly. Wew sat in silence for a while, both of our hearts beating in unison.

"I like the cold." I said finally.

"Really?" He asked doubtfully.

"Yes, really."

"And why's that?"

"Because, I know you'll keep me warm," I gently pushed his shoulders down onto the rock and lay down beside him. He offered his arm as cushioning for my head, and wrapped his other arm around me. I immediately felt myself flush with warmth, as his body pressed against mine. It felt so good to be in his arms again. Memories I had tried to forget were reviving themselves, and I didn't mind one bit.

"Of course," He said, kissing the top of my head. A smile found its way across my face and I shut my eyes. "Go to sleep. I'll be here when you wake up." He promised.

_I am glad he came back…_

Those were the last thoughts to pass through my mind as I was finally able to drift off into sleep. It had been a very, very long time.

* * *

><p><strong>Hello Hello :D<strong>

**Well, I hope you guys like this chapter.**

**It was really fun to write,**

**I love writing cheesy stuff like this omg**

**Ehh, Sorry if that story between them is too vague, but ****it was meant to be.**

**I'll probably add a chapter sometime later when it fits in, ****about exactly what went down ;D**

**anyway , ohohoh, what about zoro? **

**Who knows? You'll have to wait till I write some more LOL**

**Enjoy~**


	5. Is There Something I Should Know?

_Ace… Ace? I burst out the door and began racing towards the dock. Please don't be gone, please don't be gone. "Ace!" I screamed, but no sound came out of my mouth. Why was this? What was happening? I ran, everything around me was nothing but a blur. I have to tell him I'm sorry before he leaves. Ace! Ace! My legs felt as if they were getting progressively slower. Eventually I didn't seem to be moving at all. I could see the ship lifting its anchors. "No!" I screamed helplessly. They released the sails and it began to drift towards the ocean. I fell to my knees as hot burning tears began to fall down my face. I squinted in efforts to see through the blurry mess and saw his back facing me. A cold hand touched my shoulder from behind._

I woke up in a panic.

"Han? Are you alright?" I heard a familiar voice call out to me. I blinked several times for my eyes to adjust to the morning light. Orange hair and a concerned expression came into vision. "You were tossing and turning a lot..."

"Ahh… Bad dream." I said, shaking my head. I placed my hand over my eyes and sighed as I leaned back against the rock. For some reason, the floor felt mushy and grainy. I didn't remember falling asleep on the sand last night...

"Oh, Well, good thing you're awake then." She said, standing up. "Come help us pack when you're ready." I yawned and looked around. I seemed to be the last one up. Everyone else was already awake and putting away our things.

"You guys could've woke me up earlier." I mumbled, walking over to help out.

"Well we know you don't sleep much, Han-san. We just wanted you to rest a little since today's gonna be a long day." Replied Vivi. I smiled, wondering to myself how in the world I was lucky enough to end up with nakama like them.

"Oi! Be careful!"

"Stop moving around then!" I put away the blanket I was rolling up and turned around to see what all the ruckus was about. Zoro was sitting Indian style on the ground, while Chopper was wrapping several bandages around his left arm.

"What happened to you, Zoro-kun?" I asked him.

"He's really badly burnt." Chopper replied, carefully wrapping the gauges.

"From the sun?" I frowned. It was probably only around 8 o' clock. Definitely not hot enough to be burned yet.

"No, he-"

"Doesn't matter." Zoro interrupted, as he stood up and walked over to help pack.

"Zoro! You shouldn't move it too much! Those are some second degree burns!" Cried Chopper. "Zoro! Zoro!" He waddled after him, trying to get him to stand still.

"I'll be fine!" He growled. Chopper backed away, cautious of his temper.

Strange, I thought to myself. Speaking of burns, someone was missing .

"Where's Ace?" I asked, trying not to sound too eager.

"Actually, I haven't seen him all morning either." Replied Sanji.

"Someone say my name?" I turned around and saw him a few feet behind me. He was dragging something along with him, but I couldn't tell what it was.

"What's that?" Luffy gasped. "Did you bring us food?"

"Breakfast," Ace replied, as he swung the beast and rolled it over to Sanji. Everyone's eyes widened. It was an enormous desert lizard, burnt to a crisp, probably another poor victim of Ace's power.

"Sanji! Cook it!" Luffy exclaimed, as he rubbed his stomach. Ace let out a little chuckle and walked over towards me.

"Sleep well?" He asked, flashing me a crooked smile. Everytime he grinned, my heart melted.

"Not really." I managed to sputter.

"Why's that?" He asked sounding rather disappointed. I shuffled my feet and began to roll up another blanket.

"Dunno," I replied. He probably didn't need to know about the dream anyway.

It wasn't long after we finished breakfast and headed out that Ace and I found ourselves lost.

"Do you even know where we're going?" I huffed, fanning myself. Ace sure was useful for cuddling on cold nights, but when it came to traveling in a desert, he was about as useless as an umbrella full of holes.

"No, not really." He turned and smiled at me.

"What are you smiling about."

"Nothing, nothing." He replied, the grin still plastered on his face. I watched him from the corner of my eye in case he tried anything. "Ah!" He pretended to trip, shoving into me.

"Stop it!" I said, pushing him back.

"It was an accident, I swear." He said, shoving me again.

"Why you…" But before I could continue our little game, he picked me up in his arms and swung me around in circles. "Ace! Put me down!" I tried to yell inbetween giggles.

He continued on doing it, regardless of my begging. Eventually he stopped and looked down at me. We locked eyes for a moment as he leaned in close. I felt his warm lips press against mines and I exhaled all the tension that had built up. Once we pulled away, I began to blush furiously and commanded he let me down. "I don't want to kiss you." I said half teasing half serious. His facial expression suddenly changed, and he didn't say anything for a bit. Then, he slowly lowered me to the ground.

"What's wrong? Come on, let's go." I urged, grabbing his arm. He limply trailed along, but said nothing. I could sense a strange transition in his mood. Just a moment ago he'd been laughing and smiling and now his eyes seemed to be staring off into space; his eyebrows slightly furrowed. I slid my fingers between his, hoping to ease the tension, and leaned on his shoulder as we walked. His tanned skin was very warm against my cheek, but I didn't mind for the time being. "Something wrong?" I asked him, the curiosity finally getting to me.

"No, sorry." He replied blankly. He wasn't a very good liar.

"You know I didn't mean it." I said. He gave my hand a little squeeze.

"Why is it that you don't want to tell the others?" He finally replied

"Tell them about what?" I replied, kicking the sand.

"You know. Us."

"What is there to tell?" He stopped walking and turned towards me.

"Don't joke around." He said, a little more aggressively. I stared at him and furrowed my eyebrows.

"What?"

"Is it that swordsman? It's him isn't it?" He growled. I could see his eyes begin to fire up. I gasped and stepped a few feet back.

"Ace, calm down." I said.

"You two have something going on, don't you?"

I didn't say anything, and looked away.

"I'm sorry." He took a few steps towards me and tenderly slipped his hands into mine. "I'm just a bit worked up from the heat." He said. We walked a little further before I said anything.

"Ace…" I started. "You're here for a mission, aren't you?"

"Yes," he said, turning towards me

"That means you're going to have to leave once you're done. Doesn't it?"

"I… Suppose."

"If I tell them, that means we're only going to get closer. And when you-" Suddenly my feet began to feel slippery, and the ground below me felt as if it were sinking. "What's going on?" I asked, realizing something was beneath me. Out from the sand rose a monstrous plant, with teeth sharper than a sharks. I gasped struggled to climb out of the hole it had created in the sand. I used wind hops to try and push myself out of it, but the sand was sliding too quick for me to get a grip. "Ace!" I screamed.

"Don't worry," He called back. I heard a loud crackling noise as the monster cried in pain. I looked up to see the plant swaying from side to side, moaning from the burn Ace had just imprinted on it. What kind of desert was this? "Grab my hand." He told me, reaching into the hole. I stretched as far as I could and our fingers only slightly brushed against each other.

"You're too far." I said frustrated. A gust of air shot from my feet and I jumped just high enough to grab his hand.

"Gotcha," He reassured me pulling me up. But suddenly I felt a sharp pain my leg and I screamed. I turned around horrified to see that the plant had bitten my leg.

"Kaze kick," I said, as the monster released me from its jaws and went flying in the opposite direction. It's giant head smashed into the sand and it cried one last time before finally dying. I fell to the ground, clenching my leg. Crimson streaks were rolling down my knees and I squeezed my eyes shut to endure the pain.

"Han!" He yelled, kneeling beside me. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." I replied inbetween quick breaths. I squeezed the area around the bite and more blood came leaking out.

"No, you don't look alright. Let me carry you." He placed one arm under my legs and another behind my back and slowly lifted me up. I let out a little whimper. "I'm sorry I'm sorry," He said.

"No, I don't want to be carried." I argued, squirming out of his arms.

I know you don't want to be, but quite frankly I don't care." He said, as he stood up and began to walk.

"You can't carry me all the way there Ace. You're not superman." I huffed. The pain was spreading quickly.

"No, but I'm pretty damn close."

It was a long while before we reached Nanohana. The pain my leg had died down, and instead replaced by a rather numbing sensation. We had used a ripped off part of my shirt sleeve and wrapped it tightly around the wound to prevent further blood loss. I felt guilty having made Ace carry me through the desert, but he insisted I stay put in his arms. And even with all my refusing, deep down I knew I couldn't walk anyway. I could barely handle the sharp spikes in my leg everytime Ace took a misstep, let alone walk all the way to town on it. I was thankful we'd finally reached civilization.

We entered the town. The marketplace was bustling with merchants and busy citizens, rushing about.

"Ace you can put me down now," I told him.

"No, not till we find the others." He insisted, "That wound looks pretty serious. Didn't you have a doctor nakama with you?"

"Chopper." I said knowingly.

"Right, that little tanuki. Let's get you back to the rest of your nakama shall we?" Sometimes, his strength surprised even me. Even after traveling through the desert with a girl in his arms, he didn't even seem to have broken sweat. I sighed and nodded. Nothing I could do to stop him anyway.

As we roamed through Nanohana, I noticed people staring at us as we walked by. With our clothes and the fact that Ace was carrying me in his arms, we didn't exactly fit in. Ace didn't seem to notice and was focused on finding the rest of the Mugiwara crew.

"Haaaaaaan-swaaaaaaaaan!" I didn't have to look to know who it was.

"There you guys are," Ace said cheerfully. Everyone was gathered in a little alley behind some buildings. They were all sitting in the shade and it looked like they also had a long journey there. "We've been looking everywhere for you."

"Han-san! What happened to your leg?" Vivi asked, standing up. Ace set me down beside nami and sat down himself as well.

"Han-san! Ace! Where were you guys?" Usopp asked, sounding a bit concerned.

"We got lost. Where's that little tanuki more importantly?" Ace said.

"I am a REINDEER!" he yelled, waddling over to us. He had been sitting beside Carue. "Han-san! What happened to your leg? This looks serious! Doctor! Doctor!"

"You're the doctor." Nami said, shaking her head.

"Oh, right!" He slid his backpack off and began to rummage around, looking for something to treat my wound with.

"I'm fine," I reassured them.

"Oi, why didn't you protect her, Ace?" Sanji asked menacingly. A cloud of smoke arose from his mouth. Ace ignored him and stood up.

"Well, looks like you'll be alright here. I'm gonna go see if I can find some more info about Blackbeard," He said, his eyes studying our area. "You guys take care of her." I looked up at him and didn't say anything. He avoided eye contact with me and then left. I sighed.

"Ouch, that hurts Chopper." I said, as he unwrapped the cloth.

"These cuts are really deep!" He exclaimed. "What did you do?"

"I dunno really. We ran into this giant plant thing…"

"Even plants in the desert are dangerous. I'm sorry, I should've warned you."

"Geez, Are you sure you're alright Han-san?" Usopp asked me, cringing at the blood.

"Yeah, I'm fine. It doesn't hurt anymore. Actually it's become numb."

"That's not good!" Chopper wailed. "If you had lost any more blood, you've been dead by now!"

"Well it's a good thing she got here then." Zoro replied. I hadn't even noticed he was there. He'd been so quiet the entire time.

"Zoro," I said, surprised.

"Eh?" He glanced up at me.

"Nevermind." He shrugged and leaned back onto his arms.

"Hey, Sanji-san." Nami called.

"Yeeees, Nami-swaaan?"

"Here's some money. I need you to pick up some supplies for us."

"What would you like, Nami-san?"

"Beer." Zoro said.

"Gunpowder." Usopp said.

"We need some clothes too, Cook-san." Vivi suggested.

"Clothes?" Nami asked.

"Yes, we can't travel around in Arabasta in these types of clothes. We'd stick out like a sore thumb."

"Oh, I guess you're right." She replied.

"Okay!~" Sanji replied, as he left for the lively market.

The rest of us sat around and wallowed in the shade awaiting his return. Everyone seemed to be out of energy from the long walk. It was shocking to me how Ace could still be up and at it even after carrying me all the way here in the heat. I looked over at Zoro and for a split second we made eye contact before both looking away.

"There." Chopper said, as he finished wrapping the last bandage around my leg.

"Thankyou Dr. Chopper." I smiled.

"Calling me a doctor wont make me happy, you big jerk!" He said, though his body language was to differ. He was swaying his body back and forth, smiling a cute curvy smile.

"Man, I didn't think we'd see you guys ever again." Said Usopp who was sitting across from me. "Good thing Ace was there to carry you here. You would've been a goner."

"I could've handled myself…" I mumbled out of pride. Though, really I was thankful.

"If you could have then why'd he carry you all the way here?" Grumbled Zoro.

"Zoro, would it kill you to be a little sensitive? Obviously she was in pain." Nami snapped. She turned to look at me. "So Han-san. Is there anything you want to tell us about Ace?" She smirked. I felt my face blush a little and I made a funny face.

"What are you talking about silly." I replied, swatting her away.

"Its okay, you can tell me. Everyone, leave or plug your ears!" She shouted. "Oh, cept for Vivi. If you're willing to let her in on it too."

"Nami," Usopp said. "Even if we did leave, you pretty much just announced it to all of us."

"Hush!" She snapped, turning back to face me.

"I uh…" I had to change the topic. "Hey, where's Luffy anyway?"

"We dunno… He got lost a little while after you guys did too." Usopp mumbled, shaking his head.

"If there's something going on, just spit it out then!" Zoro snarled suddenly. "It's not like we care." I gasped.

"There isn't anything going on!" I yelled back at him. He looked up at me ferociously and stood up. My heart began to beat faster as he approached me and grabbed my arm, pulling me up.

"Zoro! She's badly hurt!" Cried Chopper, clawing at his legs.

"I need to talk to you." He said. "In private."

" I don't want to talk to you." I said angrily.

"It's important." His tone was slightly softer. Still, his expression was unforgiving.

"I can't walk very far." I replied.

"I'll carry you then." As he lifted me off my feet. "Better than that bastard could."

**:D Hello~**

**Soo, Yes finally another chapter. It's been what, a week?**

**This took me a while to write since I sorta had to plan the plot out a little better LOL**

**It's up though,**

**I hope you enjoy ~**


	6. The Truth

"Put me down damn it," I struggled, clawing at his back.

"Shut up and stop moving." There was a strange feeling hidden behind his words that I couldn't quite identify. It was hard to know whether he was doing this out of hatrid or respect. Either way, I felt a little apprehensive. What could he possibly have to say to me in private?

He finally lowered me to the ground behind a tall building. I pulled away from him bitterly.

"Listen," He started, leaning against the wall. He shut his eyes as if what he was about to say was going to be very important. I held my breath in anticipation. "I'm usually not one to butt into other people's business. And don't take this the wrong way. I could still care less about your personal life,"

"I understand. Go on." I prompted.

"It's about that Ace guy," He mumbled. His eyebrows were slanted downwards in an uncomfortable expression.

"Ace?" I asked him. I felt a little sick inside. I didn't know exactly what he was trying to tell me, but I was guessing it wasn't something I wanted to hear.

"Yeah." He was silent for a moment. "I don't think you should trust him." He finally spat out.

"What? Why?" I asked, sounding a little defensive. A sort of unsure feeling washed through my body, making me feel almost nauseous . He slid down and took a seat across from me. The bandages around his arm looked more tattered than I had remembered; a rather accurate reflection of his personality.

"Last night."

"Yes."

"I overheard you two talking."

"You were eaves dropping?"

"You guys were talking so loud you woke me up." He growled. I nodded my head, though not buying into his statement at all. "Anyway," He continued, "A real man keeps his word. I have no respect for people who dont." I frowned and shook my head.

"What do you mean?" I asked, in almost a murmur.

He sighed and pinched his nose bridge.

"He lied to you. Didn't keep his promise." I steadied my gaze on his bandages to keep my mind steady. Everything seemed to be fitting together, though not for the best. Ace's accusation, the burns on Zoro's arms, why I had woken up on the floor, they were all connected somehow. I just didn't know in what way exactly. I closed my eyes, half from exhaustion, and half due to the fact that I didn't want to look at him anymore. I hadn't the slightest idea of what had gone down, but I refused to believe any of it and decided to blame it all on coincidence.

"Why should I believe you over him," I said shakily, "You never liked me anyway."

"Because he tried to leave you." He stated, plain and blunt. His scathing words sent me into a hysteria, and a gasp escaped my lips.

* * *

><p>Ace jumped off the boulder, making sure not to wake the sleeping body in his arms. He landed on the sand, barely making a sound. Gently, he lay the girl down besides a few of her nakama and smiled a sad little smile to himself. <em>You'll be safe from the sun down here<em>, he thought. He gave her one last kiss on the forehead before turning around to leave. The man fixed his hat and emitted a tiny cough, trying to hold back the choking feeling in the back of his throat and began to walk towards the soon arising sun.

"Leaving, huh?" He stopped.

"You're awake." He replied dubiously, though not even bothering to turn around.

"How could I sleep with all that talking." The man stood up; The sound of his katana clinking together sent shivers up Ace's spine. He had always hated the sound of metal clashing.

"What are you gonna do, try and stop me?"

"No," He shrugged, stepping out into the little light that was visible over the horizon. "Not my business what you do."

"When why get up?" Ace replied, finally turning around.

"Just to make sure you know what you're doing."

"Hmph," He let out a sarcastic little scoff. But he bit his lip, almost reconsidering. "You don't think I want to stay with her?"

"I'm not saying that at all. But you're breaking a promise, and that's the most despicable thing a man can do." Ace said nothing in return, and instead began to walk away. After a few paces, he stopped and turned around.

"You care about her?"

"I care for all my nakama. Though just not in the way you're interpreting it."

"She's a lovable girl," He said, a goofy grin slowly finding its way across his face. He felt dumb, but in the dull lighting it was impossible for the swordsman to see his face anyway. It was not a smile of happiness, but rather a wistful one, as he stood there reminiscing the times the two had shared. His heart begged to stay by her side, but his mind knew he could not do such a thing. "But she's mine." He said, not yet willing to let her go. It was a selfish thing to say, and yet he did not regret saying so.

"I told you, I don't like her in that way." Zoro corrected him once more. "I know you've got somewhere to be. But if you knew you were going to leave her again, it was a damn shallow thing to lead her on like that."

"Stay out of my business. These are my choices and I'm sticking to them." He volleyed back, his hat casting a menacing shadow over his eyes.

"Fine." Was the only word the swordsman used in reply. The two stood in silence for quite a while before Ace finally turned around and ambled away. He was never one to be very emotional, but as cliché as it sounded, he could slowly feel his heart disintegrate as he walked out on her for the second time. It pained him, because he knew she'd never forgive him. Hell, he'd probably never forgive himself for making such a dumb decision. Though not regretting choosing the path of a pirate, he wished goodbyes did not have to be so hard.

"Like I'd let you off that easy," He heard someone gnarl in his ear. He turned around slowly with a smirk plastered on his face and placed his hand on the swordsman's shoulder.

"I told you, swordsman," He barked, "I stick with my choices." Underneath his hand a flame began to form. Immediately, Zoro sharply retracted his arm and cringed. He almost yelled out, but resisted, trying to convince himself it didn't hurt too bad, that he'd been cut much worse. Using all the strength and restriction he had left, he slowly and painfully grabbed onto his katana.

"Heh, like that'll keep me from doing anything." He said clenching his teeth, sliding it out with a swift movement. Ace scoffed in amazement.

"Don't over exhaust yourself."

"Don't be dumb. I'm not like others." Zoro replied, trying his hardest to keep his huffing and puffing down to a minimum.

"But everybody's body has a limit. We're just gonna have to find yours." Before Zoro had time to react, a mass of bright crimson flames was hurled at him, and he dodged it by a hair. Breathing heavily, he got back onto his feet to face his opponent.

"Damn this is getting dangerous,"

"I suppose that was a bit much. I don't intend on killing you. Just need to get you out of the way." He twisted his mouth as if pondering on how he should do so. _What's up with this guy_? Zoro thought to himself. The man suddenly disappeared from view which sent a quick panic through Zoro's body. In a split second, a pair of black eyes flashed before him as he felt a smart blow to the gut that sent all the air out of his chest. He landed roughly on the sand, sputtering and gasping for air. He could slowly feel himself begin to lose consciousness._ What's going on_? He thought to himself. _Why wasn't I able to dodge that_?

"I'm sorry. You'll have to excuse me," His opponent replied. The blurry figure began striding off towards the dawn, and then everything went black.

* * *

><p>I had my head resting on my legs, with my face tilted slightly downwards as I was listening to the story.<p>

"It was a surprise to me when he came back the next day." He continued. "But I didn't want to say anything. I thought he'd man up enough to tell you himself."

"I understand." I said, trying my hardest to clear my throat. Zoro said nothing for a while. I could hear him let out a little sigh.

"He had obligations to fulfill. Don't take it so personally." I could tell this was his way of comforting me. I stood up, realizing things were getting a little too touchy-feely for the both of us.

"I'm going to go for a walk." I said blankly. I felt like I needed to be alone for a little while to gather my feelings a bit. He raised an eyebrow at me but said nothing. I nodded, and limped away from the shaded area.

I stumbled around the marketplace for quite a while; no destination in mind, in fact, no thoughts either. There were no words to exactly describe how I felt. Just numb. My leg began to get sore after walking for some time, and so I decided to take refuge in an alley behind some broken down buildings. I plopped myself down with a sigh and closed my eyes.

_It's for the best_. I kept saying to myself. _No point in getting worked up. No point in worrying._ My breathing became a little uneven as I forced the tears down. _It doesn't matter. Don't let it affect your real goal. It was nothing. He's nothing. It doesn't matter. Stay strong, live strong_. I repeated these things in my head over and over until I felt my chest get a little lighter. I took a long deep sigh and let all my frustration out. The buildings provided a rather nice cast of shade and I actually began to feel a little drowsy. I blinked my eyes hazily and forced myself to stay awake. Who knew what kind of people could be lurking the alleys. Pulling myself together, I began to hum a random little melody to relax. After a few minutes I couldn't stand it anymore, and I slowly felt my mind begin to drift off into sleep.

"Dangerous to sleep in alleys." I heard a unpleasant voice growl lowly. I quickly sprung awake and looked around, trying to identify where they were. Slowly I stood up, ready to fight in case they decided to show them self.

"Don't know who could be sneaking around," Another voice called out, followed by a little giggle.

"Show yourselves," I said calmly, getting my fists ready to fight.

"No need to get so feisty! Hehehe!" I turned around and found myself face to face with a woman with yellow blonde hair and a strange looking umbrella.

"You can either come quietly or we'll have to take you by force." Beside her stood a tall dark man, who's expression seemed to look uncaring.

"Who are you?" I asked,

"I'm Miss Valentine!" The girl giggled.

"I'm her partner, Mr. 5." Mr. 5? Miss Valentine? Were these two more goons from Baroque Works?

"Like I'd agree to be taken in," I said sarcastically

"With you kidnapped, we can lure the rest of your crew!" Said Miss Valentine,

"We saw you wandering off by yourself. Plus, with that leg of yours, we knew you wouldn't put up much of a fight anyway." Said Mr. 5.

Feeling a bit uneasy, I frowned.

"I can still fight." I said confidentially.

"We'll see about that," Laughed Miss Valentine. She held her umbrella up high above her head and got into an odd stance. "1 kilo!" She said, as she began to lift off the ground, almost as if the wind was carrying her. I watched as she floated stories above me.

"That'll be easy to dodge," I said, though I knew there had to be a catch. There was.

"Nose bomb." From nowhere, I felt an explosion occur under my feet, which caused me to fall over. It appeared that the bomb had come from Mr. 5's body somewhere. My leg began to ache immensely as I struggled to get back up.

"100 Kilo!" Suddenly I saw a shadow begin to get larger and larger, and soon enough Miss Valentine's body began to fly down at me at a ridiculous speed. I pushed myself up and dodged it just as she smashed into the sand. My heart was beating like mad. These two had almost an unfair partnership.

"Kaze kick," I said, aiming at Miss Valentine with my good leg extended. She was struggling to pull herself out of the sand after her attack and I took advantage of it. There was sand everywhere, and I my vision was blocked from seeing either one of them. I stood quietly for a moment, hoping it had hit her.

"Bomb punch," I gasped. A strong fist appeared from the smoke and smacked me straight in the jaw followed by a massive explosion that brought tears to my eyes. My face surely had to be badly burnt. I fell on my side and couldn't obtain the strength to lift my head up.

"100 Kilo!" I heard once more. Again I forced myself up with all the will I had left in my body and rolled quickly as the shadow came down towards me. But she had known from past experience and instead she re-aimed herself and landed directly on top of me; her foot digging into my side. I coughed roughlyy and spewed out a little bit of blood.

"Hahaha! Serves you right!" She cheered. "Come on, Mr.5. Let's get her to Crocodile so we can get our promotion." My throat was painfully dry and tasted of iron. _Unfair, Unfair_. I thought to myself. I took a few desperate breaths. _I'm not going to be the one who gets my crew caught. I'm better than that. I wont let them down_. Slowly but surely, I lifted myself up from the sand once again.

"Eh? You're still moving?" Mr. 5 asked, his face twisted into a confused expression.

"Tornado kiss," I said, placing my hand directly below my chin. Sand began to fly around, causing a smoke-shield affect, therefore blocking all of us from seeing anything. Then, I shot myself up to one of the buildings with a gust of air and sprinted as fast as I could, amongst the rooftops. The pain in my leg was the last thing on my mind, and I only thought of getting away. It wasn't like me to run, but it was either this or stay and get caught.

I got a pretty fair distance away from them before I stopped to take a breather.

"Going somewhere?" Immediately shivers went up my spine. "Bomb kick," was the last thing I heard before blacking out.

* * *

><p><strong>Hello hello :D<strong>

**I finally got this up, woo~**

**School started so i cant promise I'll update as often.**

**But I'll try.**

**God I'm terrible at writing action scenes LOL**

**I tried not to make ace sound like such a bad guy but**

**one of them had to be ):**

**DONT GET ME WRONG , I STILL LOVE HIM.**

**Well, enjoy ~**


	7. Worse than Crocodiles

I woke up feeling a sense of numbness in my arms and legs. I must have been out for a while for my blood to have already stopped circulating. My limbs were tied tightly to a chair with a thickly braided rope, that looked as if it must have been used on other prisoners before me. I glanced around the room wearily, my eyes began to droop. I suddenly felt myself involuntarily fall back into the chair, feeling as though in slow motion. I couldn't find the energy to push myself back into an upright position no matter how hard I tried. A dulling ache found its way into the side of my gut, and I desperately tried to fill my heavy lungs with air, only to feel another counteractive sharp paint strike into my other side with each gasp.

A door from across the room creaked open and I could hear two pairs of legs step onto the hard tile floor. Drowsily and miserably, I forced my eyes open to take a glance at who the culprits could be. A man with silky, slicked back black hair stood before me and alongside him a raven haired woman with long legs and deep blue eyes.

"You've woken up." He snarled. His eyes were emotionless and a large cigar hung loosely out of his mouth.

"Who are you?" I asked him, though I was sure I already knew the answer.

"I am the head of Baroque Works." He said rather proudly, "In other words, I was the one who sent those two to get you and bring you back here." A large puff of grey, dull smoke floated leisurely from his dry mouth. I looked at him.

"What do you want?" I asked. My arms were unresponsive as I struggled to wiggle them around. It felt as if they were no longer a part of my body, but instead a fake prosthetic.

"I don't want you to do anything really, just stay put here. You're sort of, how do I put this, bait? Surely your crew mates will come in search of you once they notice your absence. And when they do, I can take care of them as soon as possible so they won't be of nuisance later." Even the way he spoke sent shivers up my spine. I felt that he was the type of cold blooded killer that could murder without feeling a scrap of sympathy for the victim. The woman stood beside him looked like that as well, but yet at the same time she had a sort of sadness about her, like a wolf who had strayed too far from its pack. I wondered to myself how she had ended up working for him.

I ignored the man, and instead averted my attention down towards my leg. I twisted my mouth, calling to mind the desert plant that had attacked me on the way to Arabasta. The wound had stopped bleeding under the bandages for the most part, but I would not be able to say whether or not it was going to hurt after the numbing wore off. "Anyway, I'll be off now. You should hope your friends come soon. We wouldn't want you to lose those precious arms and legs of yours, now would we?" He cackled. Swinging his fur coat around his shoulder, he signaled for the woman to follow after him. She took one last glance at me before they both left the room and the large red doors pulled shut. A sudden panicking feeling caused my heart to start racing. I hadn't thought of it before, but he was right about losing my arms and legs. I wasn't sure how long I had been tied up, but having my circulation cut off for that long could've undoubtedly ended fatally. I could lose the most important thing an aikido martial artist needed, along with my dream. Closely, I studied the red engravings the rope had twisted onto my skin and cringed. If I didn't get out of the chair fast, the tissues in the areas cut off would begin to die, and I would have to get my limbs amputated.

The sound of heavy steel rubbing against itself pulled me out of my psychotic mindset for a moment and I whipped my head around to see what was going on. Large, roughly coated crocodiles crawled out from metal doors on the ground which I had not noticed before. They swam up from the water beneath the casino and slithered onto land. There had to be at least five of them in the room already, and I could see even more of them swarming around the entrance holes, eager to taste meat, my meat. A pain executed itself once again in my lower side, and now along one side of my face. Images of fighting and violence flashed into my mind, and I slowly began to regain my memories of the tangle I had with the Baroque Works members who had captured me. I shook my head, forcing the shameful event out of my mind so I could focus on what to do next.

I strained to stretch my neck and looked behind the chair at the wall. Then I took a deep breath and with what energy I had left, I exerted an extreme amount of wind energy. "_Tornado Kiss_" I murmured. The chair, along with myself, flew back quickly and slammed roughly against the wall, smashing into millions of splintered pieces. I had been careful enough to not let myself get prickled by them, and the ropes, now untied, fell loosely off my arms and legs. I let out a sigh of relief, but immediately fell to my knees due to the numbness. I let out a small groan and forced myself back up on my feet for just long enough to run towards higher ground. Shooting little pockets of air here and there, I managed to make it up one flight of stairs to the second level and fell sprawled across the floor. I allowed blood to rush back into my limbs enough so I could walk once again. When the feeling of ants and needles signaled me regaining blood, I immediately stood up, very relieved I hadn't lost my limbs. By now the crocodiles had already begun waddling up the stairs, and I was beginning to run out of time. The room was now about one-fifth filled with the vile creatures. I decided with the amount of energy I had left in me, escaping would be my best bet. Whilst I made my way towards the large red doors, I began to realize the spikey feelings in my arms and legs had still not worn off. It was unusual for the feeling of 'sleeping' limbs to last so long, I was sure. I raised my arm up to my chest and busted open the door with one kick. "Ahhgh," I groaned. The shock of my kick sent more prickles up my leg. "Just go, just go." I urged myself. I sprinted through the long hallway, making sure to keep the crocodiles at a far distance. They weren't fast enough on land to be able to catch me. They couldn't. I wouldn't let myself get caught again.

I rushed past the drunken faces of people gambling in the casino; nothing but blurs as I ran by in a panic. Once outside, a wave of heat bursted open and soaked deep into my cold skin. I wiped my forehead and looked around to make sure Crocodile and the lady with him weren't lurking around somewhere. I put one hand on the casino wall and breathed heavily. My head ached and my body felt spiny all over. The prickles continued. _Why is my stamina so low? And how come my limbs… still feel as though they're asleep? _I began to wonder if it was already too late, if I really was going to have to get my limbs amputated. I didn't know how to feel.

The familiar sound of clinking swords rang off in the distance. I flicked my head up in response, now quite alert of my surroundings. Hopping up onto the roof of the tallest building I could find, I shaded my eyes from the sun and squinted. Not too far from where I was stationed, I saw the movement of two people, and immediately began to make my way over. With my devil fruit, it was easy to get across rooftops; but a strange feeling in my gut couldn't help but wish it were slower.

The closer I got to the scene, the more ill I began to feel. The back of Crocodile's black head came into vision, and alongside him a familiar silhouette. "You idiot…" I murmured to myself. "Idiot…" How could he possibly think he could be a match for someone like Crocodile. There was no way, no way in hell he could win. Just as the man reached to grab Zoro's right arm, I used a cyclone fist to punch the space between them, creating a gap in Crocodile's sand grain arm. Both of their heads simultaneously turned to look at me. A smirk crawled its way across Crocodile's dead-like face.

"How did you manage to escape?" He sounded rather disappointed. I looked at him wearily, but still managed to sound confident.

"Don't underestimate me. Like I'd let myself get eaten by a bunch o' stupid crocodiles." I scoffed. He turned to look back at Zoro, lowering his eyebrows.

"Stupid brat," He grumbled. "Coming to save your friend was a bad choice." His eyes shot over to me, and before I could have time to think, a dispatched fist of sand began rapidly flying towards my direction. Reacting with my surroundings, I tried to jump out of the way to dodge it, but as it got closer it opened it's grasp and gripped tightly to my leg. I gasped in horror. "You should've stayed with the crocodiles. It would've been a much less painful death." His laugh rung in my ears as I struggled to escape his fist. I tried using my free leg to kick another air hole , hoping to disconnect his arm long enough for me to flee, but I watched in complete dismay as it quickly reconnected itself. It was hopeless. I already knew what that right hand of his could do.

"As if a little wind could do anything," Zoro growled. All three of his swords were already out, along with his black bandana wrapped tightly around his head. It casted a shadow over his face, emphasizing his dark, determined eyes. "This is how you cut off an arm." He hissed, through the sword clenched in his teeth. He readied his arms in a crossed stance as he always did before striking.

"Zoro, don't." I spat out,

"Don't try to be brave about this!" He yelled at me, and began charging.

"I said don't!" I screamed. Without thinking, I sent a powerful cyclone of wind straight towards him, knocking him right off his feet. He scraped roughly onto on the concrete roof, his three swords each skidding a fair distance away from him. He managed to push himself back on his feet and glared at me with a look that made me want to cry.

"What the hell!" His voice broke through the barrier of my mindset that caused the impulsive action. It echoed across the roof and my lip quivered.

"There was no point in that. He's next." Crocodile hissed. Nothing could describe how morbidly evil and distorted the smile on his face was, as he gripped my leg tighter. The spikes were pressured into one area, causing me to let out a scream. My body was useless to me now. The blood wasn't able to access my limbs fast enough. I was losing feeling. "Say a final goodbye," I let out one last bloody scream as Crocodile sucked out the remaining life out of my right leg.

* * *

><p><strong>Hello my lovely readers!<strong>

**Yes, finally! I have updated after an entire year!**

**I'm so sorry I wasn't able to stick with this story. I've explained it countless times that I was struggling to figure out a good plot since I began this whole story on a total whim and wasn't quite sure where it was headed.**

**rest assured , I've plotted the perfect ending now, that will be sure to please... or upset many of you**

**i just wanted to thank you guys so much for encouraging me and complimenting this fanfiction**

**I really can't tell you enough how much it means to me that people enjoy reading my writing**

**It's the best compliment I could ever receive, to read reviews saying you guys wanted more**

**So, here you go everyone, the seventh chapter.**

**I really hope you enjoy it.**

**Although my writing style has changed a little bit, I hope you can continue to read and cherish this story anyway**

**Thank you so much for all the support guys, I'll be sure to update more often and finish this story, till the end! :)**

**Reviews are greatly appreciated!~~**


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